Ron Kirk

Pfizer head, Ron Kirk also in running, say sources

(Newser) -
The Obama administration is considering naming Google CEO Eric Schmidt as commerce secretary, sources tell BusinessWeek . Pfizer CEO Jeffrey Kindler and current US trade representative Ron Kirk are also reportedly in the running. Current Commerce Secretary Gary Locke is being nominated to be US ambassador to China. Presidents often look...
More »

(Newser) -
President Obama’s birthday is right around the corner—no matter where Lou Dobbs thinks he was born—but what do you get the leader of the free world? Politico asked various Washingtonians their thoughts for Tuesday's big occasion. Some notable responses:

Former Dallas mayor vows to enforce US export deals

(Newser) -
The Senate today confirmed, in a 92-5 vote, former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk as US trade representative, the Dallas Morning News reports. With global trade declining for the first time in 27 years, Kirk has vowed to make countries fulfill their trade promises to the US. Kirk paid the IRS...
More »

Trade nominee vows renegotiated pacts, tougher enforcement

(Newser) -
The Obama administration is taking a harder line with trading partners, reworking policy to emphasize priorities from unemployment at home to climate change, the Washington Post reports. The White House will seek to renegotiate trade deals with South Korea and Colombia and will demand broad concessions from other countries at...
More »

(Newser) -
Ron Kirk, President Obama’s nominee for US trade representative, has some tax problems of his own, Reuters reports today, with the Senate Finance Committee estimating a liability of about $10,000; Kirk has already moved to correct the errors. The majority stem from speaking funds he passed directly to...
More »

(Newser) -
Barack Obama announced his final Cabinet choices today, making official what insiders have hinted at for a week, the Washington Post reports. Hilda Solis will be the nominee for labor secretary, Ron Kirk for trade representative, and Republican Ray LaHood for transportation. Solis appears to be the lightning rod, as...
More »

Obama's Cabinet stocked with moderates—except Solis

(Newser) -
Progressives are viewing Barack Obama's ever-so-centrist Cabinet with disappointment, except for the notable pick of union friend Hilda Solis for labor secretary, Politico reports. Solis, a rising star in the House who had been viewed as a potential Speaker, is the daughter of a teamster and a factory worker, and...
More »

Free-trade Democrat among few Southerners tabbed for cabinet

(Newser) -
Barack Obama will announce former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk as his nominee for trade representative tomorrow, the Dallas Morning News reports. Kirk, who ran unsuccessfully for Senate in 2002, is pro-trade and a staunch supporter of NAFTA. Kirk campaigned extensively for Obama, and is one of the few Southern faces...
More »